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August 23, 2000---------------------------------FOCUS
It’s Like That: A Spiritual Memoir
In Print
Elizabeth I CEO; Strategic
Lessons from the Leader
Who Built an Empire
ALAN AXELROD
ALTIIOR OF THE BUSINESS WEEK BESTSELLER
PATTO N « N
1 .B A D E R 8 IIIH
Elizabeth I
CEO
STRATEGIC
LESSONS
I ROM
THE
LEADER
WHO
ÉfClLT AN EMPIRE
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By Alan Axelrod
Prentice Hall Press; 2000
Elizabeth was Turnaround Queen - leading England from the Dark Ages
to the Renaissance. When she was crowned in 1558, England was on the
brink o f bankruptcy, facing the threat o f invasion by Spain, tom by violent
religions dissension, and lacking in pride. By the time Elizabeth died in
1603, after a forty-five year reign, England was supreme. Elizabeth had
transformed her country by achieving unprecedented social stability,
nurturing respect for England's military and artistic achievements, and
accumulating great wealth for its coffers; England had become the most
powerful nation in Europe.
Favoring evolution over revolution, with a prgmatic sense o f when to work
within the systema nd when to defy it, Elizabeth was a master at carrying
out her vision. Describing Elizabeth’s approach to leadership as “a
combination o f prudence, boldness, and genius,” Axelrod follows the
Queen as she leads her nation from rampant strife and near ruin to the
foundation o f the great British empire. Along the way, Elizabeth I, CEO
highlights many o f the Q ueen’s convictions that remain relevant for
today’s executives, including:
•Create your self image - or others will create one for you.
•Know you are on a public stage and no longer simply a private person.
Always play a move ahead.
Keep a clear head and an even keel.
Require excellence.
•Make expectations clear and lofty.
Reward confidence and loyalty.
•Know when to bend or break the rules.
Rich in lively historical detail and practical wisdom, Elizabeth I, CEO is
an inspiring guide for anyone eager to lead - with determination, integrity,
and vision.
By The Reverend Run
St. Martin’s Press; 2000
Joey “Run” Simmons was sitting on
top o f the world. By the time he was
20 years old, he had garnered phe
nom enal fam e as p a rt f the
groundbreaking rap group, Run-
DMC. Nobody could do it better;
and wherever Run turned, he re
ceived plenty o f love.
But he could not recognize that the
love was not genuine. The more
popular and successful he became,
the more he- lost his true self: the
poet with the beat, hailing from
Hollis, Queens. Run was on a
slippery slope down into excess and
d e stru c tio n . E ven w ith the
occasional moments o f clarity that
life was not good, he would walk
out on stage to greet his roaring fans
and his clarity would disappear.
Run lost everything: his career, his
success, his family, his friends, and
his self-love. And then, turning his
life around, he got it all back, new
and improved. In It's Like That: A
S p iritu a l M em o ir, R un, now
Reverend Run, offers his tried-and-
true guide to how each man and
woman can achieve well-being.
Broken down into 13 chapters, Run
shares his personal story o f learning
from his mistakes. He follows each
chapter with a “Run’s House Rule”,
a straightforw ard form ula for
success, akin to daily affirmations.
The book includes a foreword by
his older brother, Russell Simmons,
founder o f D ef Jam Records.
Searingly honest though never
sentimental, Run charts his boyhood
beginnings with rap and quick rise
to the top o f both the hip-hop and
rock scenes, follow ed by his
devastating fall into alcohol and
bankruptcy. U tterly candid, the
c h a rt-to p p in g reco rd in g a rtist
reveals the ease with which “’denial”
can be a way o f life.
Run then explains, step-by-step, his
steady climb to being his own man,
proud to be a husband, a father. His
first step was to discover a fountain
o f spirituality within him self and a
special connection with God.
Run writes, “Problems occur to help
direct you in life. Sometimes we
only learn the value o f something
by losing it. Never believe it is over.
I lost everything. My self-esteem
was low, my vision clouded. But,
deep inside, I knew that if I hung in
there long enough and kept the faith,
I could make a comeback. If your
life isn’t what you think it should
be, don’t’ give up. This book is
living proof that you can stage a
comeback.”
Combining the intensely personal
story o f the pathmaking star with
the universal truths that come from
righteous living, I t ’s Like That
inspires and teaches us how to
achieve all our dreams.
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